Riveting machine



DEC. 14, W. JOHNDREW vRIVETING MAGHINEy 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENToR LEUR QHNDREW Original Filed July 28, 1942 Y y ,Y

ATToR Y Naves Dec. 14, 1948.I I w.JoHNpRl-:w A 2,456,127

RIVETING MACHINE original Filed July 2e, i942! 4 sheets-sheet 2 rl-T 37 WnuR Jos-NDQEW G NEYS Dec. 14, 194s. w, JLDHNDREW 2,456,127

RIVETING MACHINE 4 sheet's-sneet 5 OriginalFiled July 28, 1942 lf/ 55 ](7 t. lNvENToR BY @44ml ATTO NEYS RIVETING MACHINE OrignalFiled July 28. 1942 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR Wuucz JoHNDQf-:w

' ATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 14, v1948 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE original application 'July 2s, 1942, serial No. 452,606. Divided and this application May 11, 1944, serial No. 535,026

Claims. (Cl. 'Z8-46) My invention relates in general to hydraulic riveting machines, such as shown and described in my co-pending application Serial No. 452,606, filed July 28, 1942, and more particularly` to supporting and guiding means for the movable ram of such machines. v

This application is a division of my co-pending application Serial No. 452,606, filed July 28, 1942.

As is well known to those skilled in the art, hydraulically operated riveting machines produce the riveting action by squeezing the exposed end of the rivet and consequently great pressure must be exerted to accomplish the work. In order to adequately bear the great pressures employed in machines of this kind, it is necessary that amplebearing surface be provided for the riveting anvil. Where the anvil is movable along supporting guideways, to adjust it to various rivetingpositions the co-acting bearing surfaces between the anvil and the guideway, due to their area and the pressure upon them, create considerable friction, and, therefore, considerable power is re quired to move the anvil during such adjustment.

It has been the principal object of my invention to provide anti-friction bearings for resiliently supporting the ram in any but its riveting position, so that it may be easily adjusted, such supporting means being of such a nature as to yield and allow the bearing surfaces to engage each other during the riveting operation.

Another obiect has been to provide anti-friction means for guiding the travel of the ram over its guideways during adjustment thereof.

Moreover, means are provided to resiliently hold the anti-friction guiding means inV engagement with the guideways of the machine, thus compensating for any inaccuracies in parallelism due to nonalignment of the guideways.

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation, partly in section, of a riveting machine to which my invention is applicable. i

Fig. 2 shows an enlarged sectional elevation of the riveting ram equipped with my invention.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation showing one of the anti-friction units.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view showing the riveting ram in its normal inactive position, in which position the ram is supported above the ways with an intervening space.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary front modified form of my invention.

elevation of a Fig. 6 is a side elevation of one of the anti-r friction units of the form of invention shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. '1 is a similar view of another anti-friction unit employed on the sametype of machine.-v

Fig. 8 isv a plan view of the vention shown in Fig. '1; and,

Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation form 0fV portioiiof the ini of that' form of unit shown in Figs. 7 and 8, taken on line IX-IX of Fig. 8.

As clearly shown in Fig. l, my invention is applicable to a machine having a bucking unit I2 and a riveting unit I3 mounted within the framework I4 of the machine for transverse movement across the central opening I5 thereof. The bucking ram and riveting units are movable across said opening preferably in unison. Means are provided for moving the riveting unit which may be of any suitable or desired form. For convenience of illustration I have shown an electric motor I6 attached to a reducing unit 20 of any suitable form and connected to a feed screw 2| by means of a drive shaft 22 and suitable gear-- ing 23. The gearing is connected to a feed screw nut 24 which is held by any suitable means in non-axial relation with the end wall 25 of the housing. The inner end of the feed screw is suitably attached to the riveting anvil so that the anvil may be moved back and forth within the opening I5. For convenience of illustration I have omitted the drive mechanism for the bucking ram I2, but obviously this may be driven in unison with the riveting ram by the same type of means and by the same motor as that shown and 36 and 31 for conducting liuid under pressure to lower bearing surface 40.

described in connection with the feeding of the riveting unit.

Referring now to Fig. 2, the riveting unit oomprises a cylinder 26 having a reciprocating ram 21 slidably mounted therein and carrying a riveting anvil 30 at its upper end. The cylinder 26 is attached to the head 3| of the hydraulic cylinder 33. This cylinder is provided with a piston 32 having an upwardly extending plunger 34 which is mounted for movement in the upper end of the head 3l. The upper end of the plunger is attached to the lower end of the ram 21 by means ofa stud 35.

The hydraulic cylinder 33 is provided with ports the cylinder to cause the piston therein to be moved in either direction to actuate the ram.

The head 3I is provided with an overhanging flange 38 at each side which is provided with a This bearing surface extends over and is supported by a bearing surface 4I formed on the upper face of each of the guideways 42. When the ram is being forced upwardly to effect a riveting operation, the surfaces 40 and 4I are in contact with each other and the guideways 42 take the thrust of the riveting operation. When, however, the riveting presf sure upon the ram has been released, it is desirable to counter-balance the weight of the riveting unit and such counter-balancing action may be lbrought to a point when the surfaces 40 and 4I will be slightly separated, thereby providing a space 43 therebetween, as clearly'shown in Fig.,- 4 of the drawings. In order to accomplish this'l counter-balancing or supporting action, I provide an anti-friction. mountingunit 44 at, each side of the head 5|. Each of these units co'rnlr prises anti-friction rollers 45, each of' which isVv rotatably carried by a yoke 46. Each yoke mounted upon a pivot pin 4'! and is pressede downwardly toward the surface 4| by means of* a spring 50. A supporting bracket. 5| secured.

,to the side of the head, is provided'ior` each"4 of* the units and the yokes 4E are mcuntedz: thereon. for vertical adjustment in anyrsiiitable mannen;J I prefer, however, to mount each of the yokes upon a pivot pin 4l, carried by the bracket 5J, as shown in Fig. 3. Each of the brackets! has outwardly extending anges 53 near its upper edge', eachA ofY which`v engages one endf or'l each' of" thesprings 50, the other end of each spring bearing' z rgainstftheA outer face? of the co-acting yoke. Each-of the springs may be mounted` upon' ay pilot` @which is' carriedfbyI each' ofthev iianges 5%;

'I-'hespringsareso designed that'their com'- bin'edi resistance aga-instVv compression i's lsuiffcient to substanti'allyl counterbalance and" supporti the Weight of` the riveting unit. The amount ofl movementv of the yokes- 46? about theirlpivotpins 47* and; therefore, the positions orl the rollers 45m maybe'adjustedby/me'ansof set' screws 525 carriediby the bracketsu 5|4 and-engageable with the ends'l of the; yokes oppositie` the rollers. orderto'guide the riveting'ram'Y inr its-lateral movement across theguidewaysw, f provide; anti*- ffrictionguide rollers 55t which are; carried by the-r head v3f`| and bear oney against eaclr` orA the inner* verticalsurfaces 56` of theguideways 42.

Referring now to the form' of inventionJ shown-- in Figs. 5 to 9', inclusive; the riveting ramV 59A havingfa-y riveting anvil 60 isV slidab'ly mounted within thelram cylinder 6| wh-i'clris attached totheh-ea-d EZoftlie hydraulic-,cylinder 6-3'. The cylinderis provided with a piston and plunger (not shownl' similar to'that shown and described' in connection with the form ofl invention sho-wn inflii'g'. 2;

and suitable ports |54 and 65 are providedf'ior" conduct-'ing il'uid' under pressure to the cylinder. TheA guidewaysI of vthis form oi" invei'ition'l are reif resentedv at' 'l0 and 1li. They head 62, as in"` the other' form of invention, is` provided` with over?` hanging flanges; 121 and '|^3 which' are* supported-L respectively, bythe guideways '|0`and 1 bi'f'mearis of bearing slippers '|4.

In thisy form of invention thegmounting units' carry both the antif-friction rollers 1.5 aswell as" the guide rollers T6. These" guide" rollers are engageable preferably Withuthe outer guide-sur# faces-.8010i the'gui'deways '|11'` and 'ljlf'ieajnti-l friction" unit 8^|, shown at'l the left -liand sideofl F'l'g. 5, is provided'with a, bracket 8,2 lfiaving'ma` verticali leg-f8.3 u'fllichjv is securedi to; the head632', andwit'lr a' horizontal legjk84", extending"outwardly,l from`v the lower e'dge of the vertical leg. A recess 051s providedat each side or the horizontal leg near*y the point of itsl attachment' to the vertical leg' and the anti-friction rollernl at each side off thevunit; is disposed WithinL this recess. Each' of these'rollers i's carried" by a yoke 86` formed orf an arm 901' Eacli ofl the arms" is pivoted atI 91" toj the Vertical leg* 83 ofl the bracket- 82', thus` permitting oscillating movement' of the `arrn and' yoke; The anti-friction rollers T5*- are pressed d'ciwirwardlyv4 by rr'ieans of helicalsprings` 92', onef araingedV` abovetle'f out-"er end of eachV of'l the arms, having its' lower endL bearing against the` arnrand its-I upper endg mounted* wit-hinaspring Washer'whicli i's'i carriedby-a-n adjustable stud-` y Y Ntlreadedintofaflamge 95;, Hanse" 7'5" ir fiisexaggerated for clearness elli' is secured to the vertical leg 83 of the bracket near, its upper edge. i n

The guide, rollers 16 of? this unit are?Y each rotatably mounted upon a 'studl 96' which is suitably secured to the horizontal leg 84 of the bracket. Ashereinbefore pointed out, these rollers are designe/dita engage with the outer guide surface 80 ofthe guideway 10.

Tlie'frounting unit |00 at the opposite side of lthaheact 62,l comprises a bracket |0| having a vert-float.legl 02-1 and a horizontal leg |03. The an-iLfrictionznollers. '|5 of this unit are mounted in aimanner similar to those of the unit 8| and comprise" a yoke 86 carried by an arm 00, which arm is pivotedat 9| to the vertical leg |02 of the bracket. Ahelic'alf spring 92 having its upper end mounted'withiniaspr'ingwasher93'serves to press; the'sp'ring` downwardlyV in contact with the. arm.` lili;4 'I-hisspring Washer 93 is carried by a spring studZ 94 which i'sscrew threaded to a iiange |04 secured to the vertical leg |02 of theibracket. By meansrof the; studs 94', the springs 92 may each be individually adjusted so as to produce the properlcounter-balancing actionupon the riveting uniti when* the ram isI in its inoperative po- SOII.

The mounting unit |00 is formed with a recip rocati-ngroller plate |05 which is slidably mounted*upontheupperfsurface of thehorizontal leg |03 ofthebracket;v A-guide-roller stud |06' is carried' at'I each end of the roller plateand each stud carries one of thel guide rollersl T65 ofv this unit. The'y roller plate |05 is secured'- to the top of the l'ioriZ'nn-t'al-l lea FW inslidable manner by means of bolts" |-|0 Which are-passed through the horizontal leg of thebracket and have their upper ends disposediin` elongated'slots l" formed' in thel rollerplate'soasftoipermit some movement of the plate'toward and? away from the vertical leg of the' bracket. In order to maintain the plate in itsfinwardpositidn, a plate spring 2 is provided. Thisspring'*iemounted Within a recess 3 formed inthe central portion of; thel plate and the springl ha'f'sone of" itsA ends bearing# againstfa washer l |4.

2 The ,othenen'diofjv the'spring bears against a plate abutment |'|'5 whichissecuredI to theroller plate, preferably ilush with-- the inner edge thereof and having a depending portion ||'6 extending downA intohthe recess |`|3.l stud |20extends through Washer |5, the spring |`2, andthe abutment Il5,` andfisr screwv threaded into thev vertical leg |'04o`f the-bracket'. A nut |2| is provided on the outer end of. the studV whereby the tension of the spring" |i2- mayA beA regulated. For convenience ofiillustration' the mounting units 8| and |001 are shown in Figs. 6 to 9, inclusive, asbeing detached from the head 62. When'. attached, however, as

shoWrrin'Fig. 5", the rollers 16 carried by each of` the unitsiwillbedrawn into rm but resilient contact with the verticaly bearing surfaces 80 of the g'uid'eways 'I0 andl lf, movement of the-roller plate |05: against the tension of the spring l l2 serving to maintain thev bearing contact and to compensate for any irregularities in parallelism of the two opposing bearingv surfaces 8,0` of the guidevide a definite space 43 (see Fig. 4). This space o illustration, and as will be obvious, all that is necessary is that frictional contact between the bearing surfaces be relieved when adjustments are being made. While it is preferable to actually separate the bearing surfaces for even one or two thousandths of an inch, it is obvious that the springs may be so adjusted as to relieve substantially all or a large part of weight of the riveting unit, while at the same time leaving the surfaces in bearing contact. Obviously, just as soon as the ram is moved upwardly into riveting position, the sustaining action of the mountng units will be counter-acted and the surfaces between the hydraulic cylinder heads and guideways will take the entire thrust of the riveting operation.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A riveting machine, comprising guideways, a riveting unit having a riveting anvil and a support therefor, a mounting unit carried at each side of said riveting unit for substantially counter-balancing the weight of said riveting unit as the same is moved from one to another of a series of riveting stations, each of said units compris ing a bracket carried by said riveting unit, pivotally mounted arms carried by each of said brackets, a yoke provided on each of said arms, an anti-friction roller carried by each yoke and engageable with said guideways, springs carried by said brackets and each engageable with one of said arms, and a guide roller carried by each of said brackets and engageable with vertical surfaces formed on said guideways, and means for moving the anvil on the support for riveting operation.

2. A riveting machine, comprising guideways, a riveting unit having a riveting anvil and a support therefor, a mounting unit carried at each side of said riveting unit for substantially counter-balancing the weight of said riveting unit as the same is moved from one to another of a series of riveting stations, each of said units comprising a bracket carried by said riveting unit and formed with a vertical leg and a horizontal leg, anti-friction rollers carried by each vertical leg, spring means for pressing each of said rollers into contact with a horizontally arranged surface of the associated gudeway, said spring means being yieldable during riveting operation to provide direct supporting engagement of the riveting unit upon said guideways, and a guide roller carried by the horizontal leg of each bracket and engageable with vertically arranged surfaces of said guideways, and means for moving the anvil on the support for riveting operation.

3. A riveting machine, comprising guideways, a riveting unit having a riveting anvil and a support therefor, a mounting unit carried at each side of said riveting unit for substantially counter-balancing the Weight of said riveting unit as the same is moved from one to another of a series of riveting stations, each of said units comprising a bracket carried by said riveting unit and formed with a vertical leg and a horizontal leg, anti-friction rollers carried by each vertical leg, spring means for pressing each of said rollers into contact with a horizontally arranged surface of the associated guideway, said spring means being yieldable during riveting operation to provide direct supporting engagement of the riveting unit upon said guideways, guide rollers carried by the horizontal leg of one of said brackets and engageable with the vertically arranged surface of one of said guideways, a roller plate slidably mounted upon the horizontal leg of the other of said brackets, guide rollers carried by said plate for engagement with the vertical bearing surface of the other guideway, resilient means for urging said plate inwardly to bring the rollers carried thereby in yieldable contact with said bearing surface of the guideway, and means for moving the anvil on the support for riveting operation.

4. In a riveting machine, the combination with the riveting anvil, the anvil support, and the guideways thereof, of an anti-friction unit carried by said support and engaging said guideways, resilient means connecting said anti-friction means with said support for sustaining the weight of said anvil and said support during adjustment thereof, said means being yieldable during riveting operation to provide direct supporting engagement of the support with said guideways, oppositely arranged aligning means carried by said support and engageable with said guideways for maintaining said support in alignment therewith, resilient means for mounting one of said aligning means, whereby said support will be maintained in alignment with the guideways during adjustment, and means for moving said anvil on said support for riveting operation.

5. In a riveting machine, the combination with the riveting anvil, the anvil support, and the guideways thereof, of an anti-friction unit carried by said support and engaging said guideways, resilient means connecting said anti-friction means Withsaid support for sustaining the weight of said anvil and said support during the adjustment thereof, said means being yieldable during riveting operation to provide direct supporting engagement of the support with said guideways, oppositely arranged aligning means carried by said support, each aligning means comprising xed guide rollers carried at one side of said support and engageable with the co-acting guideway, a slidably mounted plate arranged at the opposite side of said support, guide rollers carried by said plate and engageable with the opposite coacting guideway, resilient means engaging said plate for pressing said last mentioned rollers into engagement with the co-acting guideway, and means for moving said anvil on said support for riveting operation.

WILBUR JOHNDREW.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 186,577 Jones Jan. 23, 1877 1,158,874 Walker Nov. 2, 1915 1,241,257 Wurts Sept. 25, 1917 1,381,188 Gury June 14, 1921 1,463,146 Bernard July 24, 1923 1,477,790 Townsend Dec. 18, 1923 1,556,693 Kennedy Oct. 13, 1925 1,556,722 Scott Oct. 13, 1925 1,586,783 Coffey June 1, 1926 1,598,202 La Ducer Aug. 31, 1926 2,049,842 Kling Aug. 4, 1936 2,229,629 Anderson Jan. 28, 1941 2,249,964 Lindner July 22, 1941 2,317,440 Cannon Apr. 27, 1945 2,378,212 Giern et al. June 12, 1945 

